


Sealing A Deal With The Devil

by DollyDivine



Series: The Walking Dead One Offs [2]
Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M, Gentle Negan (Walking Dead), Heartbreak, Hurt Daryl Dixon, Negan (Walking Dead) Swears, Negan Being Negan (Walking Dead), Sacrifice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-10
Updated: 2018-01-10
Packaged: 2019-03-03 03:01:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13332087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DollyDivine/pseuds/DollyDivine
Summary: Delilah doesn’t want to do this but what choice does she have? Negan has her heart and home in his claws and doing this is the only way she can set them both free.Follow up from my other Walking Dead oneshot, Then There Was Her.





	Sealing A Deal With The Devil

Delilah sat on the stool in front of the mirror and took in the sight before her. She couldn’t remember the last time she sat at her vanity unit to do her hair or make up; those times where long gone now, just ghosts of the past. She didn’t recognise the woman in front of her. Her auburn hair had grown wild and untamed, her face had a few more creases and her skin was a lot more tanned now that sun screen was a rare commodity.

She began rummaging through the draws looking for make up, tweezers, a hair brush, but she didn’t quite know where to start. She caught sight of her Grandmas’ reflection, watching her in the doorway with a heart wrenching look of sadness across her face.

“You don’t have to do this, Deedee.”

“Grandma, you know I have to...”

“If he was here, he’d barricade this door and never let you see the sun again, if it meant he didn’t have to lay a finger on you.”

“Well, he’s not here is he? This is more than just about Daryl, Grandma. I could save the town too.”

“If you go there, if you go to him...” Grandma Eileen took a deep sigh, trying her damnedest not to let her emotions get the better of her, “What happens if this plan of yours does work? Huh? He’s going to take you from me and I’ll never see you again.”

Those words were the hardest for Delilah to swallow. She knew she was right; after tonight, if all went according to plan she most likely wouldn’t be coming back. But this was more than about just setting Daryl free, this could potentially get Negan off the towns back for good.

She had never met Negan, until a few hours ago. This evil, horror show of a dictator, had killed several for her friends, kidnapped and tortured the love of her life and then decided to ransack her home town of everything it had worked so hard to salvage. The thing that petrified her the most about this man, was the look on his face when he saw her for the first time. She had seen that look before but on the face of the man she loved when they first met. In that moment, it filled her with utter dread.

Delilah had ran outside her Grandma’s cottage to confront the arseholes who were taking their belongings and responsible for the deaths of her friends, when she caught sight of Daryl. He was filthy, caked in dirt and blood and being dragged about by chains around his wrists. When he saw her, he looked so ashamed, he stormed away from her as quick as his chains would let him. Her eye line of him was blocked seconds later by the man with the bat. That was when she saw the look that sent awful shivers down her spin.

He introduced himself as Negan, leader of the Saviours and flirted with her something ridiculously until he got her name out of her.

“Delilah! Well ain’t you somethin’ else! Tell me, darlin’ do the carpets match the drapes?”

“You said you wouldn’t be collecting for a couple more days, why are you here?”

“Oh, you are a feisty one ain’t ya? Let me guess... you’re Daryl's girl! I heard someone say something about him being with a redhead but I had no idea he could pull a piece of ass like you! I need to remember to high five him for that one...”

It took her all she could muster not to swing for him there and then. She almost believed his bravado until he slipped up.

“Darling, since Rick doesn’t seem to be around and well, since you’re the only person round here with big enough balls to confront me, why don’t you and I have dinner tonight? I’ll pick you up at 7, we can have dinner round Rick’s place while discussing the situation we’ve got going on here? What do you say?”

“I’ll bring the wine.”

“I’ll see you then, Lucy.”

He called her Lucy.

It was then she put two and two together and realised Lucille was more than just a bat. She was a constant remind of a love long lost and that she must have reminded him of her too. Why else would he slip up and call her that name? It was too much of a coincidence. If she played her cards right, she could persuade him to let Daryl and this town go or at least make things easier for them. Right now, she needed to make one extremely good impression on him and to do that, she needed to pull out all of the stops.

An hour later, she was finally ready and making her way down the stair to speak with Grandma Eileen one last time. She found her in the living room rocking chair, starring out of the window.

“What do you think?”

She picked her favourite emerald green, figure hugging dress, strappy black heels and had managed to tame her hair enough to look like loose waves. She had kept her make up simple with a little cat flick liner and a classic red lips. Her Grandma put on a brave face and came to meet her at the doorway.

“You look stunning, you always do in that dress.”

They held each other until they heard the daunting thud at the door. Her Grandma kissed her cheek and begged her one last time not to answer it.

“I have to do this Grandma, I’m sorry.” She hesitated for a second, starring at the door knob, “Tell him I’m sorry too. Tell him I love him but he needs to forget about me. You’re right, if this works I won’t be coming back so he needs to move on. And make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid, please?”

She saw her Grandma nod in the corner of her eye, then she turned the knob and opened the door.

“I’m here to escort you to Negan.”

Delilah’s heart broke into a thousand pieces in that moment. There he stood, her heart in human form, the man she wanted more than anything to be behind that door and he couldn’t even look at her. His eyes were covered by his shaggy, greasy hair and he looked directly to the floor as soon as she opened the door. She wanted nothing more than to pull him into her embrace but several of Negan’s men were stood behind him.

“Daryl, I...”

“He ain’t allowed to talk to ya sweet-cheeks. He’s just here to walk you over and see what he’s losing.”

She felt the eyes of all four men examining every inch of her body, the whole situation was starting to make her stomach turn. She took Daryl’s arm, just wanting to touch him one last time and squeezed it gently. As they walked, the taunts began.

“Gentleman, have you ever seen an ass so perfect in your entire lives? Look at that thing wiggle as she walks!”

“God damn Negan! Always getting the hot ones first! We ain’t seen a piece of ass as hot as that in months and he always claims them as a wife!”

Delilah could feel Daryl start to shake with anger, his breathing heavy as he was losing the will to control himself. She held his arm even tighter to stop him from turning on them, god knows what they’d do to him if he lashed out. Just a little further and they’d be at Rick’s house.

Unfortunately, one of Negan’s goons decided to take it one step further. She felt a hand slap her butt cheek hard and smelt warm, stale breath against her ear as he whispered, “Don’t worry sweet-cheeks, I’ll take real good care of ya if Negan don’t.”

Delilah saw red. For a split second, she forgot all about the plan or about stopping Daryl from doing something stupid, no one slaps her ass and gets away with it!

Still holding on to Daryl's arm, she turned towards her assailant, who was grinning from ear to ear at one of the other buffoons. She grabbed at his crotch, managing to get a firm grasp of his manhood and squeezed, using her nails to to stop him from squirming away. He let out a painfully high pitched shrill as Delilah leaned into his ear.

“Touch me, or anyone else like that again without their permission and I’ll turn your balls into a new pair of earrings. Am I making myself clear?”

“C...crystal.”

“Good.” She let go of him and carried on walking toward the house, using Daryl’s touch to centre herself and to stop her from going back to stab the guy in the throat. She could hear laughter from in front of her and realised Negan had been watching from the porch. He’d seen the whole thing.

“You alright?” Daryl muttered under his breath, Delilah could only slightly nod in response.

She couldn’t leave things like this. She knew as soon as she entered that house, things between her and Daryl would never be the same, and that would be if she ever saw him again. As they reached the steps leading to the porch, she turned to Daryl, kissed his cheek and whispered, “We should never have left the woods. I’m so so sorry.”

She made her way up the steps to be greeted by Negan with a smug look on his face.

“Evenin’ darlin’.”

“You better get your men under control, they act like a pack of wild animals!”

“You’re right, I apologise for their behaviour. Sid, get over here.”

Negan didn’t take his eyes off her as she ascended the steps. His grin softened as she got closer, his natural smile almost made him look handsome. She couldn’t deny that Negan was attractive, he had all the charm and swagger she used to look for in a man pre-apocalypse. But his eyes held a darkness behind them and his hands were never too far away from his trusted Lucille, the weapon behind so much death. Behind Abraham’s death. Behind Glenn’s.

The look on his face suddenly turned sour as he turned towards the man who had just assaulted Delilah.

“Sid, you’re going to do me a favour. You’re going to apologise to the lady here for what you did to her. You know my rules about rape and grabbing an ass that doesn’t want it comes under those rules. Especially if that fine looking ass is on its way to dinner with me. So you’re going to go sit in one of the trucks tonight and think about what you did and then you’re going to decide which one of your hands you don’t mind losing in the morning.”

“Negan, please! Am sorry! Really, I am!”

“You’re lucky I’ve just showered or Lucille would be claiming one of them right now! Get out of my sight before I change my mind and take your head instead!”

The goon shuffled off whimpering to himself while the others escorted Daryl away. Delilah took one last look him before she was left completely alone with Negan. Suddenly, the evening turned very cold and the hairs began to prick on the back of her neck. Negan took a step too close, invading her personal space but he refrained from touching her. He had that look on his face and a soft smile that she hadn’t seen him use around anyone else but her.

“I really am sorry about that. I want you to know I wasn’t laughing at what he did. I don’t agree with that shit in the slightest. I just loved the the balls on you! The way you defended yourself? Shit, half of my men wouldn’t have the guts to stand up to Sid like that!”

He took a step back and opened the front door, gesturing her to enter.

“Shall we, darlin’?”

On shaky feet, she entered Rick’s home. Negan led her straight to the kitchen and into a fantastic smell of tomatoes and garlic. The kitchen table had already been set for two and there was a large pan sat on the hob where the delicious smell was coming from. He went straight to the pan and stirred it before tasting it and offering her some on a fork. She played along and let him feed her some of the pasta.

“Tell me, is that not the best damn tasting spaghetti you’ve ever had?”

“That is pretty good, actually.”

“You almost sound surprised, darlin’!”

“You don’t strike me as the domesticated type.”

“I’ve got a few more surprises up my sleeve. Take it you forgot about the wine? There’s a bottle of white in the fridge if you don’t mind pouring us both a glass.”

Delilah did as she was told, collecting the bottle from the fridge and pouring the contents into the glasses on the table. The lid was still sealed but she didn’t dare run the risk of drinking it before he did. She also took the opportunity to swap hers and Negan’s glasses just incase they were spiked.

Negan came up behind her with the whole pan of spaghetti and placed it on the table. He sat at the head of the table and watched her every move as she went back to the fridge.

“I’ll let you be mother and plate them up, I wasn’t sure how much you’d want.”

She wasn’t fond of being told what to do but Delilah relented and served him up a large bowl while only giving herself and ample portion. She couldn’t help but think how many of the towns people this would feed, there was so much of it! Then she realised how quiet Rick’s usually bustling house was.

“The house is quiet. Where’s Carl and Judith?”

“They’re fine. I sent them off stay at someone else’s. It’s just you and me tonight, darlin’.”

Negan was a very slow eater, taking his time with every mouthful. Delilah was starving, in-fact, she couldn’t remember the last time she had a full belly. But she kept up appearances and ate at his pace, only drinking the wine once he had had a good mouthful of it. Negan didn’t seem to be a fan of eating in silence and was constantly asking her uncomfortable questions.

“So, you and Daryl huh? How long has that been going on for?”

“A few months.”

“Really? I’d have thought Rick would have got himself in there first.”

“He’s not my type.”

“No? Then tell me, what is?”

She just raised an eyebrow in response to that question, which made him chuckle.

“Haha, I fucking like you, darlin’! You ain’t scared of me ain’t ya?”

She was, but she couldn’t let him know that.

“From what I’ve heard about you, you’re a man to be feared. Death has a tendency to follow you wherever you go but I’ve learnt not to be afraid of death anymore.”

He looked taken back by her response, “Well shit, that’s an outlook on life! You not scared of becoming one of those things?”

“You’re already dead, what use is your body to you once your souls gone? There’s nothing left inside them, they're just empty shells being forced to move around.”

“I think that might be the most intelligent fucking thing anyone has said to me since this whole shit show began!”

*******

Once their plates were empty, Delilah took them to the sink and began washing up. Negan took the dish cloth and started to dry and put them away. They worked in silence, stealing glances at one another when the other wasn’t looking. Delilah felt like her plan was working, she just hoped she’d done enough to convince him she was worth a lot more to him than the town.

She grabbed the rest of the wine from the fridge and they both made their way to the living room. She kicked off her heels and made herself comfortable on the sofa, where Negan decided to join her. She didn’t expect him to sit so close, their knees almost touching. For the first time that evening, Negan didn’t have a stupid grin on his face, he looked at her a lot more seriously. This was it, she thought.

“Delilah, lets not kid ourselves here.” He placed his hand gently on her knee before continuing, “What’s it gunna cost me to get you to come back to the Sanctuary with me?”

Bingo.

“You’re not one to beat around the bush, are you Negan?”

“Darlin’, I’m the most honest guy you’ll ever meet. I ain’t a liar, believe me when I say how fucking nice it is to be in your company! You look un-fucking-real, you don’t kiss my ass and you ain’t shitting your pants around me. You’ve got more spunk in you than all my wives put together. But I know a lady like you ain’t gunna come with me unless I give something up. So I wanna hear you say it, what’s it gunna take?”

“Daryl’s release.”

“Obviously,” he grabbed his glass of wine at the mention of Daryl’s name. She got the impression he wasn’t too fond of him, “I’m guessing there’s more?”

“I’m not naive, I know asking you to leave this town alone would be fruitless.” Negan chuckled at that one, “What I’m asking is you not take as much, that you set up a better trade system than what you have now. Taking half of everything and leaving us with next to nothing isn’t going to motivate the town to produce more. We have a huge field of crops and a great deal of tradesmen and women who can give you the services you need but you have to give us something back other than ‘protection.’ I will not leave this town while it’s people are suffering under your rule.”

“Rick killed several of my people...”

“And you took some of ours in return! We can’t keep playing tit for tat with peoples lives, Negan, it has to stop!”

“Fine! So long as Rick doesn’t kill anymore of my people, I won’t his, ya happy?”

“And for the trade?”

“I’d be willing to negotiate but I think we’d be better having Rick in the room for that.”

“We’ll give you 10% of everything we grow and make plus use of our electrician, plumber and mechanic. Provided they can return home safe and sound after doing shifts for you. And leave my Grandma and her house alone, no one is to set foot through her door!”

“I ain’t taking nothing below a third of what you have.”

“Make it a quarter and you have a deal.”

“Now hang on! We haven’t even started discussing my terms yet! You don’t know that your agreeing to.”

“I’ll come to the Sanctuary and work for you. Whatever you want.” She shied away from his gaze then. Her plan was finally coming together, any moment now they would be sealing the deal and her life would change for ever. What she didn’t expect, was Negan’s terms.

“I’ve got 4 wives back at home. 4 and they all fucking hate me. They despise my very existence but they put up with me because they are so fucking scared of what I’ll do to them if they don’t. Fear works well when you’re leading a thousand people, but when there’s just you and them, nah. I want someone who’ll challenge me, who won’t hold back with me. I want someone real, who isn’t whoring herself out or faking it. If you come back with me, if you marry me, I can’t promise to always be faithful. But what I can promise, is I’ll never hit you, I most certainly won’t ever rape you and I’ll be getting rid of the other wives.”

Jesus, that really threw her. Negan must be really falling for her, enough that he would be will to give up his other wives.

Negan continued, “But you stay 110% faithful to me. If you even look in that rednecks direction, deals off. If they try to break you out, deals off and it’ll come back on them 100 times worse. Understood?”

“Alright, that sounds fair to me.”

“And I want a baby.”

There it was, the spanner in the works. How could she even begin to contemplate bringing a tiny human, not only into this world, but under his influence.

“I...I might need to think about that last one.”

“Not straight away granted, I want to spend some quality married time together, just the two of us. But I want to start trying soon, I ain’t getting any younger. I want at least two or three, shit, as many as you can give me really! Always wanted a big family. Never wanted to with the other wives. Shit, I wouldn’t be surprised if a few of them got rid of some with out me knowing. I know one of them definitely did...”

Delilah stopped listening after that. Could she really do that? Bring innocent children into his world, under his influence? Would her Grandma ever forgive her? Would she ever forgive herself?

“Ok.”

“Ok, you’ll give me a baby? Ok to all of this?”

His hand travelled away from her knee to her thigh, his grin became wider than she’d ever seen it. His other hand gently came to her cheek, were his fingers caressed her jawline. She made a deal with a devil, she knew she was going to regret.

“I’ll do it.”

He leaned in towards her and gently kissed her lips, sealing the deal. The stubble on his freshly shaved face grazed her chin a little, but apart from that, his kisses were a lot like Daryl’s. She was starting to think maybe this wouldn’t be so bad, in her mind, she could pretend this was still Daryl and not the monster she had signed her life away to.

She ended up laid on her back as Negan towered over her, their kisses getting more and more heated. His hand slowly began to make his way up her thigh and under her dress while hers began to run through his hair.

“Oh, Lucy...”

He froze when he realised what he said. He went to get up off the sofa but she grabbed his hand, encouraging him to sit back down beside her.

“You know, that’s the second time today you’ve called me that. She must have been someone really special to have named your bat after her too.”

Negan hung his head with a mixture of grief and nostalgia across his face. He squeezed her hand then got up to pour them more wine.

“That’ll be because you remind me so much of her. Didn’t realise I’d called you it twice. Am sorry about that.”

“Don’t be. You wanna talk about it?”

“Not right now. Lucille is a story for another day. Tonight, we are celebrating. To our future.”

They clinked their glasses together to toast their future. They spent the rest of the night talking, Negan filled her in on what the Sanctuary was like and Delilah talked to him about her life being raised by her Grandma. Eventually, they fell asleep together, curled up in each other’s arms.

*******

Delilah woke to the sound of people muttering from the other room. She was a little confused as to where she was at first, until the memories of the night before came back to her.

Negan.

She removed the blanket that had been thrown over her and was relieved to still be wearing her dress. She wasn’t one to let her guard down and last night she really had by falling asleep with him like that. She got to her senses and started looking around the room for her shoes.

“Going somewhere, darlin’?”

She turned to see Negan walking into the living room with a cup of coffee and that grin still spread across his face.

“I was just looking for my shoes. Who were you talking to?”

“Our old acquaintance, Rick has finally returned home.”

Oh God, what must he have thought, finding her sprawled out on his sofa with the enemy?

“Can I speak with him?”

“We’re kinda in the middle of something. Why don’t you drink your coffee and head to your Grandmas to pack? I’ll be over shortly to help you with your bags then you can speak with him before you go?”

She declined the offer of coffee, heading straight for her shoes and then the door. As she made it to the porch, she felt the judgemental eyes of half the town on her, making her sick to the stomach. Rosita and Tara stopped their conversation to watch her leave the house, both of them giving her a look of pure disgust. Hopefully, one day they’ll realise what she sacrificed for them. She didn’t even make it to the steps before Negan grabbed her by the hand, spun her on the spot and kissed her like an old Hollywood film star.

It was a tender kiss, just like the ones from the night before, but she couldn't enjoy it. She felt like such a traitor. As he straightened her up, he tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear before letting her go on her way. The walk home never felt so long.

The second she stepped through the door, she was greeted by a very tired and teary-eyed Grandma Eileen, who threw her arms around her immediately. She reassured her Grandma that she was fine, that nothing bad had happened but that she was moving to the Sanctuary.

“It’s worked, Grandma. Even better than I thought it would. I got Daryl free, I got a better deal for the town and he and his men aren’t going to bother this house ever again. He’s even going to get rid of his other wives.”

“Oh, Deedee. I hope you know what you’re doing.”

“It’s going to be ok, Grandma, I promise.”

“Just promise me something?” Her Grandma took hold of both her hand, forcing her to look her face to face, “Don’t, what ever you do, don’t fall for him. He might be kind to you and show you all the love in the world, but don’t forget what he’s done.”

“I won’t, Grandma. There’s only room for one man in my heart.” She could feel the tears beginning to well up and a lump form in her throat, “I have to go pack, I don’t have much time.”

She made her way up the stairs, locking herself in her bedroom and finally let go. It hit home there and then, that she would never be seeing Daryl or maybe even her Grandma again. What if Negan didn’t let them visit each other? Who was going to take care of her? The house was a lot of up keep for 75 year old to do alone.

She ripped the stupid dress from her body and threw the heels across the room, never wanting to see them again as long as she lived. She put on a pair of jeans and an old AC/DC t-shirt and threw some of her belongings into a bag, before she started having a fully blown panic attack.

A frantic tapping at her window frame startled her out of her thoughts and made her jump enough to knock her bag off the bed. The contents scattered across the floor, but she couldn’t careless about it in that moment, as Daryl stood on the porch roof, starring back at her. She opened the window and dragging him inside before anyone would see and pulled him into her embrace. He pulled away and started to look her over.

“Did he hurt ya?”

She couldn’t stop looking at him, trying to take in as many of his little features, every line of his face and down to all the hairs on his chin, before she’d never get the chance to again. She didn’t realise her tears had started to silently fall down her face again.

“Deedee, answer me! Did he hurt ya?”

“No... no, I’m fine... Nothing happened.”

“Ain’t what I heard.”

“Oh and what did you hear Daryl?”

“I heard about the show he put on this mornin’. I’m gunna kill him for ever thinkin’ he can touch you n get away with it. Grab your bag, let’s go.”

Daryl grabbed her hand and started to lead her back toward the window. As much as she wanted to go with him, to run away, she knew it would only make things worse for Alexandria.

“Daryl, I can’t go.”

“Aaron is outside the wall with a car runnin’, Carl’s gunna cause a scene with Rick so we can climb over without bein’ noticed. We’re gunna go into the woods for awhile like we said we would. I’m gunna keep you safe, I promise.”

“No, Daryl.” She could feel her heart breaking even more so than it did the night before. She felt physically sick to her stomach, but she had to do this, “If I don’t go with him, you have no idea what he’ll do to this town, to its people. I made a deal with him to save you and to make life a hell of a lot easier round here. If I break it, he’ll hurt everyone I love to find me.”

“We’ll get your Grandma out too, I promise.”

“And what about the rest of the town? I can’t do this Daryl, I’m sorry. I have to go.”

She picked up her belongings off the floor and threw the bag over her shoulder. She looked up into his crystal blue eyes and saw pain on his face like she had never seen before.

“I ain’t lettin’ ya walk out that door!”

“You have to Daryl!”

She heard knocking at the front door and the muffled voice of Negan speaking with her Grandma. She had to go, there was no turning back now. She put her hand on his face and pulled it closer to hers, letting their foreheads rest on one another.

“I want you to promise me something.”

Daryl started shaking his head whispering no under his breath, pleading with her to come with him.

“Listen to me Daryl. Promise me...” Tears fell hard and fast down Delilah’s face now, “You’re gunna find someone to take care of my Grandma, ok? Her hips aren’t doing her so good, she’s struggling even though she’s too proud to say it. I get it if you don’t wanna be the one to do it but just find someone who will, please?”

He slowly nodded his head, not taking his eyes from her. He tried to wipe the tears from his girls face and get her to safety but she kept standing her ground.

“And then you’re gunna move on from me. You’re gunna find yourself a girl, you’re gunna take her out to the woods and live the life we should have had together. Will you do that for me?”

He kept shaking his head and trying to pull her towards the window, but she knew it was too late. She could hear the familiar creak of the floor boards at the bottom of the stairs, Negan was on his way up. It was too late.

“Daryl, I love you.” She gave him one final fleeting kiss goodbye before pushing him away, stepping out of her room and closing the door quickly behind her. She wiped away the tears before turning round to greet Negan almost at the top of the stairs.

“Ready to go, darlin’? You only got the one bag?”

“Yeah, that’s all I need.”

He met her at the second from top step, making it so they were face to face with one another, putting his hands on her hips and pulling her flush with his body. Delilah couldn’t look at him, she knew she was doing a terrible job of putting on a brave face but at least she’d stopped crying. He ran his finger just under her eye to wipe away the last drop.

“I let your boy go this morning, I’m guessing he’s been to see ya?”

Oh holy shit, he knew. But before Delilah could say anything to defend Daryl or herself, he stopped her.

“It’s ok, I knew exactly what he would do. I’m just glad to see you made the right decision. I promise you, you won’t regret this. I’m gunna take care of you.”

He gave her gentle peck on the lips before letting go of her completely and making his way back down the stairs.

“I think you and I are gunna get on fine and fucking dandy darlin’, especially if that’s the kinda music you’re into. AC-fucking-DC!!!”

She took one last look back at her closed bedroom door, before leaving her heart and soul behind to seal her deal with the devil.


End file.
